I attended the Digital Imaging Association’s breakfast at Graphics Canada last month and was extremely impressed with Dr. Paul Smith’s presentation. Smith is the VP and Manager of the Xerox Global Materials Research Centre of Canada (XRCC) in Mississauga, Ontario. The work this innovative centre is doing is absolutely amazing. For example, they’ve already been issued over 2,800 patents and have the most student-led start-ups in the world! One of two research centres for Xerox worldwide, it provides advanced materials research and development for both Xerox and external clients. Co-located with the centre is the Research Innovation Commercialization Centre (a regional entrepreneur and innovation hub), and GreenCentre Canada (a Kingston-Ontario-based organization for the commercialization of chemistry-based technologies). All three provide valuable expertise that helps start-up firms accelerate their growth. The XRCC is also responsible for decades of expertise in developing toner and ink for Xerox. Current research at XRCC covers digital print and intelligent packaging, workflow automation, 3D printing and printed electronics, and sensor technology. Congratulations to Dr. Smith and the more than 100 employees at the centre for their outstanding work.
It was nice to say hello to so many old and new friends at the Graphics Canada tradeshow last month in Mississauga. I think I wore through another pair of shoes visiting the more than 150 exhibitors during its three busy days. A special thank you to those who filled out their free subscription to our printed and digital magazines. By the way, the winner of our show draw for a free two-night stay at Centennial House in the heart of Niagara’s wine country was Rita Vogel Post of Vogel Art in Milton, Ontario. We’ve got a brief glimpse from inside the show, along with dozens of photos from our staff photographers, starting on page 20.
Finally, congratulations to Christine Yardley of Print Panther in Oakville, Ontario who purchased Canada’s first AccurioWide 160 wide-format printer from Konica Minolta Canada. In the summer of 2016, Print Panther became the first printer in Canada to install Konica Minolta’s MGI JETvarnish 3DS and iFoil System.
As always, stay positive and stay focused.